MP

Bob Such (Independent), who has represented this seat since 1989, as a Liberal until 2000 and as an Independent since.

Profile

Covers the outer-southern Adelaide housing estates surrounding the Happy Valley Reservoir, including Happy Valley, Aberfoyle Park, Reynella East and parts of O'Halloran Hill and Flagstaff Hill, The electorate then extends into the lower Adelaide Hills, taking in Chandlers Hill, Cherry Gardens, Coromandel East and parts of Ironbark and Clarendon.

Redistribution

Fisher has been extended into the lower Adelaide Hills, gaining around 1,400 voters in Chandlers Hill, Cherry Gardens, Coromandel East and parts of Ironbark and Clarendon from Heysen. In two-party terms this reduces Labor's two-party preferred margin from 9.4% to 8.4%. With Such intending to re-contest, the only two-party race in Fisher will be to see which of the major parties finishes second to Such.

History/Trivia

The electorate is named after Sir James Fisher (1790-1875), who was the first Resident Commissioner for South Australia, first Mayor of Adelaide and first President of the fully elected Legislative Council. Fisher was created ahead of the 1985 election and was won at its first contest by Labor. The 1989 election was much closer, Fisher narrowly won for the Liberal Party by current incumbent Bob Such. At the time of the 1989 election, Fisher was a stretch of newly established suburbs, mortgage belt territory where the rising interest rates of 1989 damaged the Bannon government's bid for re-election. A strong supporter of Dean Brown, Such was appointed to the ministry when the Liberals entered office after the 1993 election, but returned to the backbench when John Olsen became Premier in 1996. Such resigned from the Liberal Party in 2000 and contested the 2002 election as an Independent, leading on the primary vote with 33.5%, going on to win a comfortable victory on Labor Party preferences. His victory was even easier in 2006, polling 45.2% of the primary vote, this time winning on Liberal preferences. While it was Peter Lewis's vote that effectively made Mike Rann Premier in 2002, Such took on the roll of Deputy Speaker and later become Speaker when Peter Lewis was forced to resign. With the Rann government's expanded backbench after the 2006 election, Labor chose to elect one of its own as Speaker rather than retain Such in the position.